Photo by Claudia Holwill
In my recent roundup of new restaurant openings I mentioned Beuchert’s Saloon, which is expected to open in the next couple of weeks at 623 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE, the old Capitol Hill Art & Frame store. Flanked by Pound the Hill and Mattress Discounters (how is that place lasted so long??), and with its windows still covered in paper, it’s quite easy to miss this place when you walk by. But the owners recently let me in for a peek now that they are close to opening. They’re still doing a lot of final-touch work so the pictures are a bit limited but I can tell that this has a high potential to be one of my new favorite bars in the neighborhood.
One of the things I really like is that it brings back a piece of Hill history. The building used to be owned by a man named John Ignatius Beuchert, a German immigrant and prominent Capitol Hill businessman. He opened Beuchert’s Saloon in 1880 and his son reportedly ran the Saloon through Prohibition as a speakeasy “behind such fronts as a Singer sewing machine store and a gramophone shop,” according to the website. The owners of the new Beuchert’s Saloon pieced together the history by working with the Capitol Hill Restoration Society and researching at the Library of Congress.
This piece of Hill history is being recreated by Acqua Al 2 partner Nathan Berger, August Paro, and PS7’s bartender Brendan McMahon. The website explains that “In resurrecting this neighborhood mainstay, the new owners have gone to great lengths to maintain the incredible history of the building, handling most of the build-out themselves. Partner and designer August Paro meticulously recreated period-appropriate fixtures and finishes, inspired by the amazing history of this long-standing Capitol Hill establishment.”
Photo by Claudia Holwill
So what to expect when it opens? The 47 seat restaurant and bar (plus 20 additional seats on a back patio when the weather warms up) offers a “farm American” menu as well as a craft tap soda, cocktails, beer and wine. Look for old-fashioned tap handles dispensing prosecco and a variety of housemade sodas at the bar – just one of many unique touches that are hard to not admire.
Photo by Claudia Holwill
The open kitchen is run by Executive Chef Andrew Markert, most recently Chef de Cuisine at Washington, DC’s PS7’s and formerly Chef de Cuisine at Washington, DC’s Hook and Arlington, Virginia’s Tallula. Beuchert’s menu is broken down into five sections: Markert’s Market, Snacks, Whole Meals, Company and Treats & Novelties. Produce and meats will be sourced primarily from East Oaks Organics Farm, the family farm owned by partner Brendan McMahon in Poolesville, MD, as well as other small farms and co-ops in the area.
Photo by Claudia Holwill
A menu breakdown from their press release:
- Markert’s Market is devoted to locally sourced vegetables. Dishes may include Crispy Brussels Sprouts with a garlic confit and mustard sauce, Squash Hash with candied onions and pickled peanuts and Warm Roasted Beets with walnuts, celery and parsley dressing, and can be ordered individually, or as a trio to create an entire vegetable entrée.
- Snacks include a vast selection of cheese and homemade charcuterie, such as Grilled Country Pate with baby greens, pomarey jus and sun gold jam and Chef Markert’s favorite MD Crab Imperial.
- With focus on whole foods, Beuchert’s Saloon presents their main courses as Whole Meals, including One Steak, Two Steak featuring either one or two roasted strip loins, chimichurri sauce and marrow butter and the Roasted East Oaks Chicken from East Oaks Farm with a bacon butter, roasted Brussels sprouts and specialty Mom’s gravy.
- To accompany main meals, Chef Markert has created Company, his own selection of delectable side items like White Corn Grits with local goat cheddar and French Fries with sauce ravigote.
- Treats & Novelties options will include playful retro sweets like Bananas Foster Twinkies with a rum frosting, seasonal Popsicles and Slice-o-Pie, with rotating daily flavors and varieties.
For a few more pictures, scroll through the slideshow below. They do not have an exact opening date quite yet but it will be in the next few weeks.